The daily gossip: January 17, 2020

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1. Eminem surprise-drops a new album
2. Taika Waititi is in early talks for a new Star Wars movie
3. Martha Stewart isn't into Gwyneth Paltrow's vagina-scented candle
4. Matthew McConaughey wants to fix his mom up with Hugh Grant's dad
5. George Lucas met Baby Yoda

published 17 January 2020

1. Eminem surprise-drops a new album

Whether or not you actually noticed, rapper and self-styled provocateur Eminem has been awfully quiet lately. But it turns out he's been working on something behind the scenes: Music to be Murdered By, a new 20-track album with a title designed to alienate both parents and grammar sticklers, which Eminem surprise-dropped on Friday. The album's cover is directly inspired by Alfred Hitchcock, because apparently Eminem also spent some of his time out of the spotlight taking a Film 101 class.

With Rise of Skywalker in the rearview mirror, Disney is looking for someone to chart a new course for the Star Wars franchise. And at the risk of being obvious: Why not reach out to the innovative, intensely charismatic director who fixed the previously boring Thor franchise, and who just scored an Oscar nomination for Jojo Rabbit? Disney is reportedly in early talks with Taika Waititi about developing and helming a Star Wars movie. And given Waititi's penchant for thinking outside the box, who knows — maybe a Jar Jar Binks origin story is on the horizon?

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Earlier this week, Gwyneth Paltrow's lifestyle company Goop released a candle simply and bluntly named "This Smells Like My Vagina" for a mere $75 — a candle which promptly sold out. But at least one high-profile lifestyle icon didn't rush to add the candle to her collection: Martha Stewart, who said she "wouldn't buy that candle." Stewart added that she suspects the target market for the candle is "a lot of guys who are horny," and who apparently have $75 in disposable income to burn on a chunk of scented wax.

Today in unexpectedly delightful celebrity couplings: While working together on the upcoming crime thriller The Gentlemen, Matthew McConaughey and Hugh Grant realized their elderly parents might hit it off — and decided to fix them up at the movie's upcoming premiere. "His father's 91, my mother's 88. Yeah, why not?" said McConaughey, while Grant theorized that the connection would be "red hot." And if the couple actually hits it off when they meet at the movie's premiere next week, we'll officially have a rom-com more adorable than any movie either McConaughey or Grant has starred in.

It's a rare privilege to cuddle with Baby Yoda — but we suppose that being the creator of the entire Star Wars franchise should earn at least partial custody. While filming for the second season of The Mandalorian, creator Jon Favreau posted a picture of George Lucas tenderly cradling Baby Yoda during a set visit. And adorable as this whole thing is, be careful, George — we've seen what the Mandalorian will do to anybody who tries to take Baby Yoda away from him.

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Scott Meslow is the entertainment editor for TheWeek.com. He has written about film and television at publications including The Atlantic, POLITICO Magazine, and Vulture.